Ace/Queen

Will you raise it UTG? Will you call a raise from UTG or UTG+1 with it? Will you re-raise a mid-late or LP raiser with it? If you will call a UTG raise with it, can you get away from it if your opponet shows strength on an ace high flop, assuming opponet isn't a fish/maniac?


just asking this because, I think one of the things that could turn a lot of marginal players into break-even or winning players is not calling off their chips with AQ and AJ.

To answer your questions:
1) Depends on many factors, but generally yes
2) and 3) depend on who's raising. I definitely like to be in control of the hand, so generally I'll reraise, but I won't call a tight aggressive player who raises UTG or even MP unless i know he's stealing.
4) if i know him to be a fish/maniac, I will reraise his PF bet from utg instead of calling. If he's really a fish or maniac, he'll push with AA KK or AK if he has it, and i can let the AQ go. If not, I'll know upon hitting my ace on the board that I'm probably ahead.

I do think I overvalue it a bit, mostly due to the fact that I play smaller tournaments/cash games where there are more donkeys, so I am generally ahead with the hand. It hasn't caught up to me yet, but I'm sure it will when I move up in stakes.

I have so far learned to be pretty dismissive of AJ. That's a late raising hand if no one's opened the pot, and an easy fold on a re-raise. AQ makes me hesitate but I will often plow forward, sometimes to my benefit and sometimes to my detriment.